Delhi: 10-year-old boy dies after firecracker explodes in his hands

A 10-year-old boy died after a flower-pot firecracker exploded in his hands in Outer Delhi’s Narela area on Diwali night, the Delhi Police said.

The incident took place around 9.45 pm on Sunday when the boy, identified as Rishi, was bursting an anar firecracker outside his house.

“The child, Rishi, was bursting a flower-pot firecracker (Anar) that he held in his hand in front of his house in Narela area,” a senior police officer said.

The firecracker exploded, and the flames burnt his chest.

Rishi initially screamed for his mother, and his family thought he had suffered minor burns, his elder brother told reporters. However, he soon fainted, following which the family rushed him to a hospital on a scooter.

“We all were burning it in our hands. I don’t know what happened, when he did it,” his elder brother said.

Police said they received a call from the hospital at 10.50 pm informing them that the child had been brought dead with burn injuries caused by a firecracker.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Fire Services received 281 calls on Diwali, of which at least 24 were related to fires caused by firecrackers.